London based Yolande De Vries Photography's WEDDING and HEADSHOT photography blog. Browse through for wedding, branding and fashion reportage stories. Plus tips for brides & couples, and headshot clients.

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Boxpark Croydon Exhibition #CroydonLives

Last summer Bare PR commissioned me to photograph and be part of the 'Croydon Lives' exhibition. Bare PR specialises in PR and marketing for social change, and the idea behind the project was to uncover ‘ordinary men and women’ in the Borough, to underline their contribution to the community and their stake in its future, including those living more on the margins of society. Those depicted include local firefighters, a young man recently sleeping rough in the town center and a young mum with her 3 children.

For me personally, being part of this project has been amazing. I have met some incredible people, made new friends and really enjoyed the process. Thanks so much for choosing me to be part of this project

This is what Lorraine from BarePR had to say:https://www.barepr.co.uk/boxpark-exhibition-celebrates-the-lives-of-croydon-people/

'CROYDON LIVES'

Sahr Yillia

Sahr came to the UK as a refugee having survived wars in both Sierra Leone and Liberia. He is an international motivational speaker, entrepreneur, child and disability rights activist and loves making friends at the Croydon Refugee Day Centre.

Eric and Tina HandsEric and Tina live with their dog Bernie in South Croydon. They tied the knot last year after more than 20 years’ together.

Liz Stark

Proud mum of 3, Liz is a Croydonian born and bred. Following a career break to be at home with Milo, Olivia and Grace, she retrained with Digital Mums. Through this she went on to launch the Croydon Facelift Twitter account.

Jack Kew

Growing up in Croydon, Jack witnessed how street crime affected the young people in his borough. He wanted to make a difference and now works full time at Lives Not Knives, mentoring and educating young people on the effects of knife and youth crime.

Sheila Macgregor, Tracy Doyle, and Rebekah Watts

Sheila, Tracy and Rebekah are all London firefighters based at Croydon's technical rescue centre. These women are real heroes forming part of a team who carry out technical rescues from water, from height and from deep underground using highly specialist skills. They also provide home fire safety visits to residents across Croydon giving advice on fire safety and fitting smoke alarms for free.

Jamie HendeyJamie was sleeping rough on the streets of Croydon just 9 months ago. With support from charity Evolve, he’s now working as a warehouse assistant and plans to move into his own flat.

Madhuben Amin

Madhuben came to London from Uganda in 1972 and lived in Balham until moving to Croydon in 2000. She loves living in Croydon and uses the trams to help her get around the shops and local markets.